Harassment Complaints Often Left Unresolved

Some Women Who Speak Out Are Forced Out, Survey Reports

Harassment Complaints Ignored

Last December, a factory worker in Connecticut called a hot line to complain that her co-workers were touching her breasts repeatedly and making sexually explicit jokes and comments.

Six months later, the hot-line operators called her back to see if the situation had improved.

It hadn't. Her complaints, which went all the way to the chairman of the board of her company, had been entered as "bad incident reports" in her personnel file. The harassment had gotten worse and she was afraid she would be fired if she continued to complain.

The worker's case is among those reported in a follow-up survey of 21 women who last December called an informational hot line on sexual harassment. The hot line was sponsored by the Connecticut Women's Education and Legal Fund and the state Commission on Human Rights and Opportunities. Most of the women in the follow-up study done this summer had not fared much better than the factory worker.

Eleven of the women changed or lost their jobs because of the harassment or their efforts to stop it. Four said the harassment had not stopped. Loss of self-esteem, nervous breakdowns and marital strain were all reported as a result of the harassment.

In only five cases did the harassment stop as a result of action taken by the women or others. And while those women were positive about the effects of their action, the sanctions for the men who harassed them were limited.

Leslie Brett, executive director of the Connecticut Women's Education and Legal Fund, said the results of the follow-up were "not encouraging on a large scale."

However, she said, "I was very moderately encouraged that there were five in the survey that reported some positive resolution."

Of the 128 women who called the hot line in December, only 5 percent, or about six of them, reported that the harassment stopped when they took action.

Brett said she was concerned about follow-up findings that "the

most severe harassers usually had little to fear" and that the stiffest punishment was a written reprimand.

"So often the woman is found to be correct and then the company hesitates because they don't take it seriously or they don't want to hurt the guy," said Brett. "Most men can be fairly confident that even if they do sexually harass a woman, nothing much is going to happen to them in a lot of companies."

The legal fund and the state human rights commission sponsored the five-day hot line after the confirmation hearings of Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas generated widespread talk about sexual harassment. Callers received basic information, booklets and referrals, and were asked if they would agree to be called again later for a follow-up. Of those who agreed, 21 were interviewed during the summer.

Among them was a woman who was propositioned at work by a co-worker. In December, she talked to her supervisor, filed complaints with her company and went to the state commission. There was an investigation by the company and the harasser was reprimanded, but the harassment did not stop. The harasser was promoted to be her direct supervisor. Six months later she had a nervous breakdown and had to quit her job.

One woman who reported that her actions ended the harassment said a fellow worker had been propositioning her. He stopped after she asked him to three times.

It was "absolutely worth it," she said and it "feels great."

Brett is hopeful that new state laws, which will require companies to train supervisors about sexual harassment and state and federal regulations by Oct. 1, 1993, will improve the situation.

Anita Gagnon, spokeswoman for the state commission, also was hopeful. "Public awareness has just gone up exponentially," she said, as have the numbers of complaints filed with the commission